Philippine pastor who styles himself as ‘son of god’ accused of rape at senate hearing

Apollo Quiboloy, who is Rodrigo Duterte’s spiritual adviser, heads a sect in Davao City where it is alleged he repeatedly assaulted girls and young women

Three former members told a senate hearing they felt pressured to ‘sacrifice’ their bodies to Quiboloy, adding that up to ‘200 women’ were at his beck and call

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Apollo Quiboloy, head of the Kingdom of Jesus Christ sect, is wanted by the FBI. Photo: AFP

Published: 9:31pm, 26 Jan 2024

A Philippine pastor linked to former president Rodrigo Duterte has been accused of repeatedly raping women and telling them to “sacrifice” their bodies to the “appointed son of god”, in the latest revelations from a senate probe into sex-trafficking allegations facing the sect leader.

Apollo Quiboloy, who is Duterte’s spiritual adviser, heads the Kingdom of Jesus Christ (KJOC) church in Davao City, where three women on Tuesday alleged they were sexually abused by the pastor over years.

The identities of the women, two Ukrainian and one Filipino, were masked behind the pseudonyms Sofia, Nina and Amanda. All told similar stories of their abuse during their testimony before opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros’ committee on women, children, family relations and gender equality.

Senator Risa Hontiveros at the senate hearing on January 23. Photo: Facebook/hontiverosrisa

Nina told the senate committee over a Zoom call that she, her mother and her siblings were devoted members of KOJC in Ukraine. In 2012, she flew to Davao City after receiving an invitation from Quiboloy.

The sect claims to have 4 million members in the Philippines and another 2 million abroad, including some in Hong Kong.

Several months after arriving, Nina said she was called upon by Quiboloy to become a “pastoral”, a term used by the sect to refer to personal attendants to the pastor.

According to Nina, she did not understand what Quiboloy meant when he said a pastoral “must sacrifice everything, including your body”, taking it to mean that she would not be allowed to marry.